Foldable display

ABSTRACT

A foldable display is disclosed. In one aspect, the foldable display includes a first display unit located on a front surface of the foldable display, a second display unit located on a first side surface of the foldable display, and a third display unit located on a second side surface of the foldable display. The foldable display includes a first configuration in which the first to third display units are exposed and a second configuration in which the first display unit is folded and the second and third display units are exposed. The second and third display units are configured to form a fourth display unit inclined with respect to the folded first display unit in the second configuration of the foldable display.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/674,366, filed Aug. 10, 2017, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/050,229, filed Feb. 22, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No.9,733,883, which claims priority to and the benefit of Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2015-0025947, filed Feb. 24, 2015, the entire contentof both of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND Field

The described technology generally relates to a foldable display.

Description of the Related Technology

Display devices include various electronic components for displayingimages. Example display devices include televisions, computer monitors,personal digital assistants (PDAs), and smart devices.

Certain display devices, such as organic light-emitting diode (OLED)displays, liquid crystal displays (LCDs), plasma display panels (PDPs),or electrophoretic displays (EPDs) can be manufactured to displayhigh-definition images.

In recent years, foldable displays which can be arranged into variousconfigurations for portability and various other uses have beendeveloped. Users can use foldable displays more easily and moreefficiently by adjusting the available surface area in a display regionvia folding or unfolding the foldable displays into differentconfigurations.

SUMMARY OF CERTAIN INVENTIVE ASPECTS

One inventive aspect is a foldable display including a plurality ofdisplay units having an arrangement structure that effectively uses theavailable space of the foldable display.

Another aspect is a foldable display having a first configuration wherethe foldable display is unfolded and a second configuration that thefoldable display is folded including: a first display unit located on afront surface of the foldable display; a second display unit located onone side surface of the foldable display and inclined at a first angleof inclination with respect to the first display unit; a third displayunit located on another side surface of the foldable display andinclined at a second angle of inclination with respect to the firstdisplay unit. The first to third display units are exposed in the firstconfiguration, the first display unit is folded in the secondconfiguration and the second and third display units are exposed in thesecond configuration, and the exposed second and third display units canform a fourth display unit inclined with respect to the folded firstdisplay unit.

In some embodiments, the first angle of inclination can be smaller thanthe second angle of inclination.

In other embodiments, the second and third display units can be parallelto each other.

In still other embodiments, the sum of the first and second angles ofinclination can be substantially 180°.

In even other embodiments, the fourth display unit can be inclined atthe first or second angle of inclination with respect to the foldedfirst display unit.

In yet other embodiments, the fourth display unit can include the secondand third display units included in a same inclined surface.

In further embodiments, the first to third display units can constituteone flexible display.

In still further embodiments, the first display unit can correspond to aregion covering the front surface of the flexible display, and thesecond and third display units can correspond to regions covering theboth side surfaces of the flexible display.

In even further embodiments, the first to third display units canconstitute one flexible display and a plurality of inflexible displays.

In yet further embodiments, the first display unit can be the flexibledisplay located on the front surface of the flexible display, and thesecond display unit can be the inflexible display located on one sidesurface of the flexible display, and the third display unit can be theinflexible display located on another side surface of the flexibledisplay.

In much further embodiments, the foldable display can further include afifth display unit located on a back surface of the foldable displayadjacent to the second or third display unit.

In still much further embodiments, the second and third display units,and the fifth display unit can be exposed outside in the secondconfiguration.

In even much further embodiments, the foldable display can furtherinclude: a sensor unit sensing the first and second configurations ofthe foldable display; and a controller controlling the sensor unit, andthe first to fourth display units.

In yet much further embodiments, the controller activates the first tothird display units when the first configuration is detected by usingthe sensor unit, and the controller activates the fourth display unit byactivating the second and third display units when the secondconfiguration is detected.

In some embodiments, the fourth display unit can provide a notificationabout an incoming event.

In other embodiments, the fourth display unit can provide simpleinformation about an incoming event received by the foldable display.

In still other embodiments, the fourth display unit can provide a lockrelease interface for unlocking the foldable display.

Another aspect is a foldable display comprising a first display unitlocated on a front surface of the foldable display; a second displayunit located on a first side surface of the foldable display andinclined at a first angle with respect to the first display unit; and athird display unit located on a second side surface of the foldabledisplay and inclined at a second angle with respect to the first displayunit, wherein the foldable display is configured to be arranged in i) afirst configuration in which the first to third display units areexposed and ii) a second configuration in which the first display unitis folded and the second and third display units are exposed, andwherein when the foldable display is in the second configuration, thesecond and third display units form a fourth display unit inclined withrespect to the folded first display unit.

In exemplary embodiments, the first angle is less than the second angle.The second and third display units can be substantially parallel to eachother. A sum of the first and second angles can be approximately 180°.The fourth display unit can be inclined at the first angle or the secondangle with respect to the folded first display unit. The fourth displayunit can comprise the second and third display units having the sameinclined surface. The first to third display units can be formed as asingle flexible display panel.

In exemplary embodiments, the first display unit corresponds to a regioncovering the front surface of the flexible display, and wherein thesecond and third display units respectively correspond to regionscovering the first and second side surfaces of the flexible display. Thefirst display unit can be formed as a flexible display panel and thesecond and third display units can be each formed of a rigid displaypanel. The foldable display can further comprise a fifth display unitlocated on a back surface of the foldable display adjacent to the secondor third display unit. When the foldable display is in the secondconfiguration, the second and third display units and the fifth displayunit can be exposed.

In exemplary embodiments, the foldable display further comprises asensor configured to detect the first and second configurations of thefoldable display; and a controller configured to control the sensor andthe first to fourth display units. The controller can be furtherconfigured to activate the first to third display units when the sensordetects that the foldable display is in the first configuration; andactivate the fourth display unit when the sensor detects that thefoldable display is in the second configuration. The fourth display unitcan be configured to display a notification about an incoming event. Thefourth display unit can be configured to display simple informationabout the incoming event received by the foldable display. The fourthdisplay unit can be configured to provide a lock release interface forunlocking the foldable display.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the described technology and are incorporated in andconstitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrateexemplary embodiments of the described technology and, together with thedescription, serve to explain principles of the described technology.

FIG. 1A is a front perspective view of a foldable display in a firstconfiguration according to an embodiment.

FIG. 1B is a rear perspective view of a foldable display in a firstconfiguration according to an embodiment.

FIG. 1C is a side view of a foldable display in a first configurationaccording to an embodiment.

FIG. 2A is a front perspective view of a foldable display in a secondconfiguration according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2B is a rear perspective view of a foldable display in a secondconfiguration according to an embodiment.

FIG. 2C is a side view of a foldable display in a second configurationaccording to an embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a foldable display withan activated fourth display unit.

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a foldable display with alock release button.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a foldable displayincluding a fifth display unit.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a foldable display according to anembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN INVENTIVE EMBODIMENTS

The terms used in this specification are selected as a general termsthat are widely used while considering the functions of the presentspecification. Also, in certain cases the meanings of terms is will bedefined in the description of the corresponding embodiment. Accordingly,a term used herein shall be interpreted based on practical meanings andthe contents throughout the specification instead of the simple label ofthe term.

Moreover, although exemplary embodiments are described in detail withreference to the accompanying drawings and contents described therein,the described technology is not limited or restricted by the exemplaryembodiments.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments will be described in detail withreference to the accompanying drawings. Herein, a foldable display caninclude a first configuration in which the foldable display is unfoldedand a second configuration in which foldable display is folded.

FIG. 1A is a front perspective view of a foldable display in the firstconfiguration according to an embodiment. FIG. 1B is a rear perspectiveview of a foldable display in the first configuration according to anembodiment. FIG. 1C is a side view of a foldable display in the firstconfiguration according to an embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 1A to 1C, the foldable display 10 includes a firstdisplay unit R1 located on a front surface of the foldable display 10, asecond display unit R2 located on one side surface of the foldabledisplay 10, and a third display unit R3 located on another side surfaceof the foldable display 10. The first to third display units R1 to R3are formed on a substrate SB. The substrate SB can be flexible and/orrigid. In at least one embodiment, one portion of the substrate SB canbe flexible and another portion of the substrate SB can be rigid.

The second display unit R2 can be inclined at a first angle ofinclination θ1 with respect to the first display unit R1. In addition,the third display unit R3 can be inclined at a second angle ofinclination θ2 with respect to the first display unit R1. The firstangle of inclination θ1 can be different from the second angle ofinclination θ2. For example, the first angle of inclination θ1 can beless than the second angle of inclination θ2.

The second and third display units R2 and R3 may be substantiallyparallel to each other. In some embodiments, the sum of the first angleof inclination θ1 formed by the first and second display units R1 and R2and the second angle of inclination θ2 formed by the first and thirddisplay units R1 and R3 is substantially 180°. Accordingly, when thefoldable display 10 is changed to the second configuration, the secondand third display units R2 and R3 meet to form a fourth display unit R4that is a new display region. A more detailed description of the fourthdisplay unit R4 will be described below in relation to FIGS. 2A to 2C.

The first to third display units R1 to R3 can be formed of a singleflexible display panel. A flexible display panel generally refers to adisplay panel manufactured on a flexible substrate that can be bent,folded or rolled without any loss in display characteristics. Forexample, a flexible display panel may be an organic light-emitting diode(OLED) display panel or an electrophoretic display (EPD) panel. In theflexible display panel of this embodiment, the first display unit R1 canbe a region covering the front surface of the foldable display 10, thesecond display unit R2 can be a region covering a first side surface ofthe foldable display 10, and third display unit R3 can be a regioncovering a second side surface of the foldable display 10. The first andsecond side surfaces can be opposing side surfaces of the foldabledisplay 10.

In another embodiment, the first to third display units R1 to R3 includea flexible display panel and a plurality of inflexible or rigid displaypanels. An inflexible display panel generally refers to a display panelmanufactured on a solid substrate in contrast to the foregoing flexibledisplay panel. For example, the inflexible display can be a liquidcrystal display (LCD) panel, a plasma display panel (PDP), or anelectrowetting display (EWD) panel.

The first display unit R1 can be a flexible display panel located on thefront surface of the foldable display 10, the second display unit R2 canbe an inflexible display located on a first side surface of the foldabledisplay 10, and the third display unit R3 can be an inflexible displaylocated on a second side surface of the foldable display 10. The firstand second side surfaces may be both side surfaces of the foldabledisplay apparatus 10, facing each other.

In addition, the first to third display units R1 to R3 can include atleast one flexible display panel and/or at least one inflexible display;however, the described technology is not limited to the above-describedembodiment.

Herein, the first configuration of the foldable display 10 refers to aconfiguration in which the foldable display 10 is unfolded. In the firstconfiguration, the first to third display units R1 to R3 of the foldabledisplay 10 can be exposed to environment. Therefore, a user may changethe configuration of the foldable display 10 to the first configurationso as to use the first to third display units R1 to R3. However, sinceit can be difficult for a user to view the third display unit R3 due tothe angle of the third display unit R3 in this configuration, the thirddisplay unit R3 can be selectively activated/deactivated in the firstconfiguration depending on the embodiment.

Herein, the second configuration of the foldable display 10 refers to aconfiguration in which the foldable display 10 is folded. In thisconfiguration, the second and third display units R2 and R3 of thefoldable display 10 are exposed to the environment and the first displayunit R1 is not exposed to the environment. Therefore, a user can changethe position of the foldable display 10 to the second configuration soas to use only the second and third display units R2 to R3. In thesecond configuration, since it is difficult for a user to view the firstdisplay unit R1, the first display unit R1 can be deactivated and thesecond and third display units R2 and R3 can be activated.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the foldable display 10 in the secondconfiguration will be described in detail.

FIG. 2A is a front perspective view of a foldable display in the secondconfiguration. FIG. 2B is a rear perspective view of a foldable displayin the second configuration. FIG. 2C is a side view of a foldabledisplay in the second configuration.

Referring to the embodiment of FIG. 2A to 2C, in the secondconfiguration of the foldable display 10, the first display unit R1 isnot exposed to the environment since the first display unit R1 is foldedalong a predetermined folding axis A, and the second and third displayunits R2 and R3 are exposed to the environment. In this configuration,the second and third display units R2 and R3 form a fourth display unitR4 inclined with respect to the folded first display unit RI.

More specifically, the second display unit R2 can form a first angle ofinclination θ1 with respect to the first display unit R1 and the thirddisplay unit R3 can form a second angle of inclination θ2 with respectto the first display unit R1. When the foldable display 10 is changed tothe second configuration and the second and third display units R2 andR3 are arranged to be substantially parallel to each other so that thesum of the first and second angles of inclination is substantially 180°,the second and third display units R2 and R3 can form a fourth displayunit R4 which is a new display region. Since the second and thirddisplay units R2 and R3 are substantially parallel to each other, thesecond and third display units R2 and R3 have substantially the sameinclined plane to be able to form a fourth display unit R4 in the secondconfiguration of the foldable display 10. Accordingly, the fourthdisplay unit R4 can form the first and/or second inclination θ1 or 82with respect to the folded first display unit RI.

In the standard foldable display, when a display unit is located on aninner side of the folded foldable display, users may be inconveniencessince they are required to unfold the foldable display whenever the userwants to check simple information such as an incoming call, an incomingmessage, current time, current weather, or current temperature. Inaddition, when the standard foldable display is unfolded and all displayunits of the foldable display are activated, power consumption may beincreased compared to at least one embodiment of the describedtechnology.

When the display unit is located on the exterior of the folded foldabledisplay, the display unit may be vulnerable to damage by even a smallimpact since the display unit is exposed to the environment.

However, in the foldable display 10 according to at least oneembodiment, since the second and third display units R2 and R3 areformed on a side surface exposed to the environment in a foldedconfiguration, users can view simple information even when the foldabledisplay 10 remains folded. Accordingly, the foldable display 10according to at least one embodiment can reduce power consumption andimprove the speed and convenience of providing information. In addition,since the first display unit R1 that is a largest display unit islocated inside the folded foldable display 10 when in the secondconfiguration, the display unit can be prevented from being damaged byan external impact.

Since the second and third display units R2 and R3 operate as onedisplay unit when interlocked or aligned with each other, the second andthird display units R2 and R3 can function as the fourth display unit R4that is a new display region.

FIG. 3 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a foldable display withan activated fourth display unit.

Referring to FIG. 3, the fourth display unit R4 can be activated in thesecond configuration as the second and third display units R2 and R3forming the fourth display unit R4 are activated. The fourth displayunit R4 can provide a variety of information to a user by using thesecond and third display units R2 and R3.

In one embodiment, the fourth display unit R4 can display informationabout an incoming event received by the foldable display 10. Forexample, the fourth display unit R4 can provide a notification about areceived call, a received message, or the like. In addition, the fourthdisplay unit R4 can display simple information regarding a receivedcall, a received message, or the like. For example, the fourth displayunit R4 can display simple information regarding the sender of areceived call, the sender of a received message, a message's content, orthe like.

In another embodiment, the fourth display unit R4 can displayinformation about a current environmental condition of the foldabledisplay 10. For example, the fourth display unit R4 can display simpleinformation about a current surrounding environment such as the currenttime, current weather, current date, and/or current temperature.

In another embodiment, the fourth display unit R4 can provide a lockrelease interface for unlocking the foldable display 10. For example,the fourth display unit R4 can display various lock release interfacesfor inputting a password, a fingerprint, etc. for unlocking the foldabledisplay 10. A user can unlock and use the foldable display 10 byperforming an unlock action set in the displayed lock release interface.

In consideration of the above-described embodiments, there is an effectin that the foldable display 10 according to at least one embodiment canbe provided with information about an incoming event through the fourthdisplay unit R4 quickly and conveniently even when a user does notunfold the foldable display 10.

FIG. 4 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a foldable display with alock release button.

Referring to FIG. 4, a foldable display 12 can be separately providedwith a lock release button 20 on a back surface thereof. The lockrelease button 20 can be a button for unlocking the foldable display 12.A user can unlock the foldable display 12 by touching or pressing thelock release button 20.

The lock release button 20 can be a mechanical button. A user can unlockthe foldable display 12 by pressing the mechanical button.Alternatively, the lock release button 20 can be provided with a touchsensor. A user can unlock the foldable display 12 by touching the touchsensor.

The fourth display unit R4 can be activated when the foldable display 12is unlocked.

FIG. 5 is a view illustrating an embodiment of a foldable displayincluding a fifth display unit.

Referring to FIG. 5, a foldable display 11 can further include a fifthdisplay unit R5 on a back surface thereof. The fifth display unit R5 canbe located adjacent to the second or third display unit R2 or R3 on theback surface of the foldable display 11. Thus, in the secondconfiguration of the foldable display 11, the second and third displayunits R2 and R3 and the fifth display unit R5 are exposed to theenvironment. In FIG. 5, one embodiment of the foldable display 11including the fifth display unit R5 adjacent to the third display unitR3 is illustrated.

The fifth display unit R5 can provide a variety of simple information toa user together with the fourth display unit R4 or operatingindependently from the fourth display unit R4. The embodiment describedabove with reference to the FIG. 3 in relation to the informationprovided by the fifth display unit R5 can be applied to the presentembodiment in the same or a similar manner.

The further provided fifth display unit R5 enables a user to view thedisplay unit via a wider viewing angle to provide simple informationfrom the foldable display 11.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a foldable display according to anembodiment. Depending on embodiments, certain elements may be removedfrom or additional elements may be added to the foldable display 10illustrated in FIG. 6. Furthermore, two or more elements may be combinedinto a single element, or a single element may be realized as multipleelements.

Referring to FIG. 6, the foldable display 10 can include a sensor unitor sensor 200, first to fourth display units R1 to R4, and a controller100.

The sensor unit 200 can sense the configuration of the foldable display10. In more detail, the sensor unit 200 can sense the firstconfiguration in which the foldable display is unfolded and the secondconfiguration in which the foldable display is folded.

The sensor unit 200 is provided with at least one sensing capabilitythat can sense the configuration of the foldable display 10. Forexample, the sensor unit 200 can include one or more of: a touch sensor,an infrared sensor, an ultraviolet sensor, a gyro, a gyroscope sensor, astrain gauge sensor, a tilt sensor, an acceleration sensor, a depthsensor, a pressure sensor, a grip sensor, a camera sensor, a photosensor, and a proximity sensor in order to sense a folded or an unfoldedconfiguration of the foldable display 10.

The sensor unit 200 can transmit a sensed result to the controller andthe controller having received the sensed result may detect a currentconfiguration of the foldable display apparatus 10.

The first to fourth display units R1 to R4 can be activated in responseto a configuration of the foldable display 10 to display images. Herein,the images may refer to a variety of visual information such as a stillimage or a moving picture visible by a user. For example, in the firstconfiguration of the foldable display 10, the first to third displayunits R1 to R3 can be activated to display images. Alternatively, in thesecond configuration of the foldable display 10, the first display unitR1 can be deactivated and the second and third display units R2 and R3can be activated to display images.

The size of the first display unit R1 can be greater than that of thesecond to fourth display units R2 to R4. Therefore, the first displayunit R1 can display more diverse and more detailed information comparedto the second to fourth display units R2 to R4. Therefore, when a userwants to use a larger screen, the user can use the first display unit R1by converting the foldable display 10 to the first configuration. Thesecond and fourth display units R2 and R4 can provide easy and simpleinformation which can be provided to a user through a smaller screen. Amore detailed description in this regard is as described above withrespect to FIG. 3.

The controller 100 communicates with constituent units 100, 200, and R1to R4 of the foldable display unit 10 and can control the constituentunits 100, 200, and R1 to R4.

In one embodiment, the controller 100 can communicate with the sensorunit 200 to control the sensor unit 200. In particular, the controller100 can receive a sensed result from the sensor unit 200 to detect thefirst and second configurations of the foldable display 10.

In another embodiment, the controller 100 can control the first tofourth display units R1 to R4. In particular, the controller 100 cancontrol the activity of the first to fourth display units R1 to R4 inresponse to a configuration of the foldable display 10. The controller100 can activate the first to third display units R1 to R3 when thefirst configuration of the foldable display 10 is detected by the sensorunit 200. The controller 100 can activate the second to third displayunits R2 to R3 to activate the fourth display unit R4 when the secondconfiguration of the foldable display 10 is detected by the sensor unit200. The controller 100 can recognize the second and third display unitsR2 and R3 as the fourth display unit R4 that is one display unit tocontrol the fourth display unit R4 by controlling activity of the secondand third display units R2 and R3. When the foldable display 10 furtherincludes the fifth display unit R5, the controller 100 can also controlthe activity of the fifth display unit R5 in response to a configurationof the foldable display 10.

In addition, the controller 100 can control images displayed on thefirst to fourth display units R1 to R4. The controller 100 can controlthe first display unit R1 so as to display an image requiring a largescreen such as a movie, TV, or an application execution screen. Inaddition, the controller 100 can control the second to fourth displayunits R2 to R4 so as to display images requiring small screens such as alock release interface, the current time, a notification regarding anincoming event, and/or simple information. When the foldable display 10further includes the fifth display unit R5, the controller 100 can alsocontrol a display image of the fifth display unit R5.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram according to an embodiment of foldable display10. In FIG. 6, respective blocks are constituent units 100, 200, and R1to R4 of the foldable display 10 and are separately illustrated to belogically discriminated. Therefore, the constituent units 100, 200, andR1 to R4 of the foldable display 10 described above can be mounted on asingle chip or on a plurality of chips according to the design of thefoldable display 10.

According to at least one embodiment, a foldable display can provide avariety of information to a user by using a plurality of display unitsformed on side surfaces thereof even when the foldable display isfolded.

Although the respective drawings have been described individually forconvenience of explanation, other foldable displays can be designed suchthat the embodiments illustrated in the respective drawings can bemerged to create a new embodiment without departing from the teachingsof the described technology. Further, the foldable display is notlimited to the configurations and methods of the above-describedembodiments, but all or some of the respective embodiments can beselectively combined and executed so that various modifications can bemade within the scope of the described technology.

Although preferred embodiments of the inventive technology have beenillustrated and described, the inventive technology is not limited tothe above-mentioned embodiments and various modified embodiments may beavailable by those skilled in the art without the scope of the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A display, comprising: a first display unitlocated on a front surface of the display; a second display unit locatedon a first side surface of the display, the second display unit is at afirst angle with the first display unit; and a third display unitlocated on a second side surface of the display, the third display unitis at a second angle with the first display unit, wherein the display isconfigured to be arranged in i) a first folding configuration in whichthe first display unit is folded and the first to third display unitsare exposed or ii) a second folding configuration in which the firstdisplay unit is folded and only the second and third display units areexposed, wherein the second display unit and the third display unit areconfigured to display dependent information from each other when thedisplay is in the first folding configuration or the second foldingconfiguration.
 2. The display of claim 1, wherein the first to thirddisplay units are formed as a single flexible display panel.
 3. Thedisplay of claim 1, wherein the first angle is different from the secondangle.
 4. The display of claim 1, wherein a sum of the first angle andthe second angle is approximately 180°.
 5. The display of claim 1,wherein the first display unit is formed as a flexible display panel andwherein the second and third display units are each formed of a rigiddisplay panel.
 6. The display of claim 1, wherein the first display isnot activated when the display is in the second folding configuration.7. The display of claim 1, wherein the first to third display units areactivated when the display is in the first folding configuration.